Rules of the competition
- Objective and organization
- Definition of innovation
- Categories and selection criteria
- Eligibility
- Selection procedure
- Confidentiality
- Personal data
- Submission of application files
- Nature and amounts of awards
- Provisional time schedule and progress of the competition
- Commitment of the candidates
- Intellectual property
- Terms and conditions
- Amendment of the rules
- Delivery of the rules
- Disputes
1. Objective and Organization
The objective of the New Now is to encourage innovation in all its forms by promoting exemplary approaches and by supporting teams and candidates with innovative projects in the selected fields. As such, this competition supports projects with the aim of accelerating their realization or commercialization.
The New Now takes place in two stages:
- An idea development phase, leading to the submission of projects, their evaluation and the designation of nominated projects, the number of which may range from 3 to 5, based on an evaluation conducted by a jury.
- A phase of prototyping the idea, which takes place in Switzerland for 3 months (July-September). The same jury will decide on the grand winner of The New Now.
The partners of the New Now are the Swiss Embassy in Greece, the Flux Foundation and the Inartis Foundation.
2. Definition of Innovation
Innovation can be defined as:
- A societal benefit
- A competitive advantage through a new organization, process, product or service
- An improvement in client/customer relations
- The product of strategic management or of an idea
- A source of profitability and development
4 fields of innovation are considered:
- Product and service innovation
- Process innovation
- Marketing and market innovation
- Organizational innovation
A project is considered as innovative on the double condition:
- Innovative product, process or service
- Realization of a new concept: product or service
3. Categories and Selection Criteria
All application files will be evaluated according to the following selection criteria:
- Clarity of the vision (statement of need) for the realization of a product/service by the project leader
- Originality of the project and the approach
- Motivation/capacity of an individual or a team to advance a project
- Observed or envisaged regional, national or international societal or economic consequences / Impact of the project in a broader sense
These different points must be detailed in the application file.
4. Eligibility
The competition is open to projects which are:
- Proposed collectively or individually
- Genuinely new, have not been finalized, or are not derived from ideas already realized
- Submitted by candidates who can prove their involvement in Greek society
The following cannot be candidates:
- Staff members of the companies/institutions supporting these ideas, companies in which candidates have a majority stake, as well as members of the jury and their families (spouses, ascendants, descendants and collaterals in the first degree).
- Winners of previous competitions presenting the same innovation.
Applications will only be accepted if all the documents which the application file is required to contain are provided. These documents will not be returned at the end of the competition.
No changes to the application file will be admitted after the closing date for applications, as this may result in the project being rejected.
5. Selection Procedure
For each of the New Now challenges, the procedure must allow for the selection of winners among the candidates.
The selection will be carried out in three stages:
- Verification of the eligibility of the applications by the Inartis Foundation.
- Initial review, ranking of applications and proposal of a relevant selection of complete application files to the jury by the Inartis Foundation. Meeting of an expert jury, which will select between 3 and 5 nominees who will each be awarded a budget to prototype their project/proposal in the framework of the Inartis Foundation’s support.
- Awarding of the New Now. An oral presentation of the projects by the nominees before the jury is organized by the Inartis Foundation. In the absence of an oral presentation of the project by the project leader, the jury may exceptionally decide to adjudicate on the basis of the file. In the event of a tie between two files, the vote of the jury’s president shall be decisive.
The jury which is responsible for the decisions reserves the right:
- To retain a project.
- To not award a project.
- To reject incomplete files or those which do not meet the competition criteria.
The jury is not obliged to provide reasons for its decisions, which are final.
6. Confidentiality
The application files as well as the deliberations of the jury are confidential. The members of the jury are bound by the strictest professional secrecy.
7. Personal data
As operator of The New Now, the Inartis Foundation stores all application files on its servers in Switzerland. Personal data shall not be shared, used or sold to third parties. The project leaders may, however, be contacted by the partners in order to support their development. Any participant in The New Now may request the deletion of his/her data by sending an email to
[email protected] or by sending a written request to Inartis Foundation - Avenue des Baumettes 11 - 1020 Renens.
8. Submission of Application Files
Completed and signed applications and their annexes must be submitted by email or by post to the address indicated on The New Now webpage before the deadline, as evidenced by the postmark or email receipt. Application files will be stored by the Inartis Foundation.
9. Nature and Amounts of Αwards
An operationnal support will be available for each nominated project for the prototyping phase that will take place in Switzerland. This amount must cover all accommodation and prototyping costs. No additional funds will be granted by the organizers. In addition, the Inartis Foundation will provide coaching for projects that require assistance with prototyping. If a nominee does not take part in this second phase or does not turn to account this support in Switzerland, he/she must submit a written development plan. On this basis, the members of the jury may decide to revise or even cancel the financial support amount.
A communication action will be set up by The New Now partners with the aim of highlighting the exemplary nature of the nominated and winning projects.
10. Provisional Time Schedule and Progress of the Competition
The time schedule of each competition can be found on the competition website and can be requested by email sent to
[email protected] or by mail sent to Inartis Foundation - Avenue des Baumettes 11 - 1020 Renens.
11. Commitment of the Candidates
Each candidate for the New Now commits:
- To accept the prize in its attributed form, whether in cash or in services, which is not subject to any exchange.
- To take into consideration and accept without reservation the present rules.
- To renounce any appeal concerning the conditions of the organization of the competition, the results and the decisions of the jury.
- To not make any claim or request for compensation in the event of amendment, postponement or cancellation of the New Now.
- To hold the intellectual property rights of the proposed project or to be authorized by the coholders to apply for the New Now.
- To authorize in advance and free of charge the partners of The New Now to publish, reproduce and represent his name, address and photograph on any medium that could be used in any event related to this Challenge in the context of the secrecy of industrial and commercial property and in compliance with the personal data protection law.
- The beneficiary further authorizes the New Now partners to cite the project in their internal and external communication. He/she shall refrain from using their image in any domain that could harm public order, good morals and the image of the New Now partners.
12. Intellectual Property
As the New Now aims to support entrepreneurs, the intellectual property developed by the project leaders belongs to them. If any of the New Now partners or their experts were to add technological bricks belonging to them, a discussion would be held with the project leaders, leading to a specific contract, in order to identify a partnership path on this subject.
13. Terms and Conditions
Participation in the competition is free. Candidates may present several files based on different ideas. A project may be submitted by several natural and/or legal persons. The expenses related to the presentation of the application (presentation before the jury, travel expenses, expenses for the preparation of the file, ...) shall be borne by candidates. No reimbursement shall be made.
14. Amendment of the Rules
The New Now partners reserve the right to cancel or modify the present rules if dictated by circumstances or for reasons of force majeure. In the case of an outright cancellation, no charge of any kind whatsoever may be brought against the New Now partners. In case of amendment of the present rules, the organizers undertake to send the content to the candidates, at the latest 15 days before the evaluation takes place.
15. Delivery of the Rules
The present rules can be obtained free of charge upon written request to the Inartis Foundation, Avenue des Baumettes 11 - 1020 Renens.
16. Disputes
Any dispute concerning one or more points of the rules as well as any dispute that may arise from the present competition shall be irrevocably decided after deliberation between the parties.
